Early may 2009 saw us , generally, enjoy proper Spring weather, though it could still be frosty overnight, and we did wake up to a light dusting of fresh snow on the hills a few times - so my safari clients were advised to dress for all 4 seasons in one day!

With more Summer species arriving , we saw bird day-lists hit the 60 mark for the first time this year, whilst mammal day-lists ranged between 6&9.

Wildlife highlights included:

Regular dawn sightings of Capercaillie at RSPB Loch Garten - the males still seemed to be 'lekking' - though not as aggressively as in late April.

Good early morning views of 'lekking' Black Grouse - though they too seem to have calmed-down a little lately.

A dawn encounter with an Otter, seen fishing on the River Spey - a great way to start the day.

An unbelievably close view of a beautiful Golden Plover on our local heather moorland (see pic).

Regular mountainside encounters with Ring Ouzels - the male birds looking very dapper with their white crescent moon chest markings & silvery wings.

On our seclude local lochans we had regular sightings of Black-Throated Diver, Red-Throated Diver & Slavonian grebe, all looking superb in their striking summer plumage.

Our local female Ospreys all seem to be incubating eggs, but we sometimes got lucky & witnessed the males either plunging in to the water to catch a fish , or delivering fish to the waiting female - both sights being thoroughly enjoyed by my clients & myself.

More year ticks! - Redstart, Cuckoo & Swift were noted for the first time this year.

Walks in our local Caledonian pine forests gave us regular views of Crossbills, though Crested Tits became more difficult, as we only had the males to see as the females must be on eggs.

April 2009 saw Springtime finally hit this part of the world, with, apart from a few frosts at the start of the month, the weather generally warmer & sunnier. With most of the Winter visitors now gone and many of the Summer visitors arriving, bird day-lists crept up into the 50's, with mammal day-lists ranging between 6-9 depending on our luck.

Wildlife highlights included:

Good views of one of Britain's rarest & most impressive species, the magnificent Capercaillie at the RSPB's excellent early-morning caper-watch hide at their beautiful Loch Garten reserve (open April1-May20 5:30-8am). Seeing these huge Grouse 'lekking' with their huge tails fanned is surely a 'must-see' for any real birder.

The first 'fledglings' of the year being seen - namely Mallard chicks, closely followed by Blackbirds.

Nesting Ospreys appear to be on eggs - the female doing most of the incubating, whilst the male brings her fish, the male only incubating whilst she feeds or exercises her wings.

The Black Grouse 'lek' also peaks in mid-late April - like the Capercaillie, seeing their bizarre strutting, jumping dances accompanied by strange bubbling, whooshing calls is an amazing spectacle, and highly recommended.

Year ticks! Whether it be the first flash of a Wheatear's white rump, the first hirundines (Martins & Swallows) seen catching insects over the River Spey, or hearing the Willow Warbler's uplifting whistling song from the top of a silver birch - these are actually much more than just mere 'ticks' , they are signs that Winter is over & Spring is here!

Black-Throated Divers (see pic), Red-Throated Divers and Slavonian Grebes are now back on territory and in their splendid Summer breeding plumage - these are all very rare breeding birds in the UK and very welcome & attractive additions to our day-list.

Walks in the Caledonian forests produced frequent sighting of both Crested Tits & Scottish Crossbills, though it should be noted that knowing their calls is very important in locating them.

March 2009 started cold & wintry, but ended mild & spring-like. March in this area is probably best described as a seasonal overlap month with many of the Winter visitors such as Redwing, Whooper Swan & Fieldfare lingering, and the end of the month seeing some of the Summer visiting species such as Red, & Black-Throated Divers , Slavonian Grebe & Osprey returning to the area to breed. With many species now beginning to sing & display, I think it's fair to say that 'Safari season' is now officially here!

Wildlife highlights included:

The first Ospreys returning to traditional nest sites after a Winter in Africa, during the last week of the month, many of them 'old friends' - identified by leg rings. These iconic birds are always very popular with my guests and a welcome addition to our day-lists.

The male Black grouse were seen to be properly 'lekking' - posturing aggressively at each other, fanning their tails, flutter jumping & 'hissing' harshly - an amazing sight!

Good views of a Peregrine Falcon perched proudly on a sentinel point on a steep cliff, it's dark 'hood & moustache' , barred front & yellow legs showing up well through the scope.

A brief sighting of a Kingfisher - a rare bird in this are - on a local loch.

Super views through the scope of a family party of Scottish Crossbills feeding high up in a conifer, the orangey-red males looking particularly impressive (see pic).

A new mammal day-list record for 2009 (so far!) of 9: Red Deer, Roe Deer, Sika Deer, Reindeer, Red Squirrel, Rabbit, Brown Hare, Mountain Hare, Mountain Goat.

February 2009, can probably best be described as (to use an old football cliche) a month of two halves - the first half being very cold, with temperatures down as low as -18c, and lots of snow turning the area into a true winter wonderland - whilst the second half was unseasonably mild, with temperatures into low double-figures and a real spring-like feel about it.

Wildlife highlights included:

Bramblings, Yellowhammers, Waxwings & Redpolls were all seen in or around my garden during the coldest weather, taking advantage of the food & water on offer when natural food was hard to come by.

A fantastic close encounter with a flock of Waxwings in a fellow birder's garden (thanks Peter!) - with our kind host allowing us access to within a few feet of the birds - a marvellous experience (see pic).

A trip North to the Moray coast to escape the snow provided a good selection of waders, wildfowl, water birds & sea ducks including Knot, Long-Tailed Duck, Scaup, & Common Scoter.

The local feral Mountain Goats were seen to have (very cute) white, new-born youngsters.

Good views of a Merlin hunting Buntings & Finches over some local farmland - the speed & agility of these small raptors has to be seen to be believed!

Several species of birds were noted carrying nesting material, including Dippers & Ravens.

Red Grouse males are reaching peak condition, & are quite easy to see (& hear ) as they display from high points amongst the heather on the moors.

Wader numbers were seen to increase along the Spey valley flood plain, including Oystercatchers, Curlews & Lapwings.

Skylarks were heard singing properly for the first time for many months.

A Happy New Year to all our readers! May you have a wildlife-tastic 2009!

January 2009 started very cold up here with plenty of snow & temperatures down to -11c but got less cold as the month went on, and finished with an unseasonably mild spell, and the days began to grow noticeably longer.

Wildlife highlights included:

Good views of Red Grouse on the moorland - the males already becoming very vocal, their guttural 'go-bak, go-bak' calls livening up the otherwise near-silent moors. (see pic)

Super views of a juvenile Golden Eagle hunting low over heather moorland just before dusk, presumably on the look-out for a Red Grouse or a Mountain Hare, it's white tail-base & wing patches showed up well in the low light as it changed direction.

A dawn encounter with a Stoat in it's beautiful pure white winter coat on the banks of the River Spey. It appeared to be manically searching bankside holes for small mammals.

Good, close up views of Red Deer in a beautiful Highland glen - Winter often gives us our best views of these impressive animals as they get driven down off the hills by bad weather.

Waxwings - several small flocks of these gorgeous winter visitors lingered in our area, with 3 seen just outside my garden on the 24th.

Early signs of Winter's end & Spring's arrival were also evident:

Blackbirds & Thrushes began to join the Robins in a (very weak) dawn chorus.

The first Lapwings were seen alongside the River Spey.

Common Buzzards were seen to be displaying.

December started & ended cold with a brief mild spell in the middle of the month with less snow than last month, and sadly, very little over the Christmas period. Though the days are now at their shortest, there is still plenty to see.

Wildlife highlights included:

A brief glimpse of a Stoat chasing Rabbits on a roadside verge, looking splendid in its pure white winter coat with just the tip of the tail remaining dark.

Another animal that changes colour to white in winter is the Mountain hare, and these are quite easy to find on the hills - as long as there is not too much snow!

Snow Buntings were seen on a few occasions near the Cairngorms Ski centre car park, they appear to be driven down from the mountain tops by bad weather & heavy snowfall (see pic).

Ravens were seen to be displaying - wheeling around acrobatically whilst uttering their coarse "gronk-gronk" calls

Woodcocks were seen on a few occasions, usually over woodlands at dusk.

Waxwings were still in the area, often being seen around local villages, usually feeding on berry bushes.

The number of male Black grouse at traditional lek sites was seen to increase, with up to 5 seen at a time - numbers should continue to grow as the lekking season approaches.

One sad thing to report: One of the River Spey Otters was unfortunately found dead, killed whilst attempting to cross a road near the river. With no real predators, this is the biggest cause of premature death to the UK's Otters.

November was a wintry month in the Cairngorms National Park, with regular falls of snow and temperatures dropping down as low as -9c towards the end of the month.

Wildlife highlights included:

A Waxwing 'invasion', with several hundred of the berry-munching beauties from across the North Sea visiting our area, bringing a welcome splash of colour to the dark Winter days (see pic).

Several dawn & dusk sightings of Barn Owls hunting over fields, seeing one of these almost ghost-like creatures in the half-light is surely one of British nature's most enjoyable sights.

Regular sightings of Crested Tits on bird feeders sighted near to Caledonian Forest. They only seem to come to feeders regularly when conditions turn really wintry.

A brief visit to our area by a Snow Goose in it's pure white plumage, it mingled with a flock of Greylag Geese for a few days.